North Canton police seek money for gun range

It could cost more than $300,000 to properly upgrade North Canton Police Department gun range in the basement of City Hall.

Robert Wang CantonRep.com staff writer @rwangREP

No city police officer here has fired his gun in the field for more than 30 years, says Police Chief Stephan Wilder.

But he fears that could change in an instant.

"We moved beyond if it's going to happen to when it's going to happen," said Wilder.

But the chief says the price of more fully and efficiently preparing his 26 sworn officers for that life-changing moment doesn't come cheap. He is asking council to set aside a down payment of $50,000 in the 2014 budget to fix and upgrade the police department gun range in the City Hall basement. The project could end up costing more than $300,000.

The ventilation system over time is less efficiently removing from the air the gunpowder residue and traces of toxic lead from bullets during each shooting session, Wilder said.

Police Sgt. Shawn Bates, one of the department's firearms instructors, said, "If you're down here long enough it can actually become a visible fog."

UPGRADES RECOMMENDED

In 2006, consultant Meggitt Defense Systems Caswell, based in Minneapolis, recommended that the department no longer use the range until the air system could be fixed. It said the steel bullet trap was obsolete and had damaged components. The consultant added that the lack of some ceiling panels meant a bullet, while unlikely to escape the range, could ricochet by striking an area without the panels. Meggitt estimated the cost of needed work at $277,000.

However, City Administrator Mike Grimes, who was then the police chief, said that with the plummeting of income tax revenue due to the closure of the Hoover Co. plant, the city didn't have the money to make the repairs.

Despite the consultant's report, Bates said the range is surrounded by thick concrete walls and ceiling, which would prevent a bullet from escaping. And he said it passed an Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspection a couple of years ago, and no one's health has been jeopardized. But to minimize exposure to toxic substances to the officers, the department uses the range for gun training only when necessary. And no more than two officers at a time fire weapons in the range.

Bates said the force for years has used an outdoor range a half-hour drive away that a private citizen has offered for their use at no cost under an informal arrangement. He said the citizen has asked that his identity or location not be disclosed. The range is certified for pistols, shotguns and rifles. The sergeant said under standards set by the Ohio Peace Officer Training Commission, all police officers have to be certified in the use of all the weapons they carry at least once a calendar year.

They must pass tests that involve accurately hitting targets in a variety of positions and movements. Officers learn how to run with a gun, how to take a cover and how to fire a shot from different positions.

Bates said officers in a group usually make two or three trips a year to the range, for their required certification and additional training. The problem is each session with the travel time can take three to four hours, incurring not only extra fuel costs but overtime as other officers have to fill in on patrol.

The sergeant said if the City Hall range was fully functional, four officers could train at one time and at any time of the day or night no matter the weather, offering the department the flexibility to avoid the travel time and overtime costs. In addition, it's not clear how much longer the citizen will make his range available, and ranges used by other area law enforcement agencies are often solidly booked.

Bates said the less training his officers get on a certified range, the more difficult it becomes for them to maintain their confidence in using their firearms.

STICKER SHOCK

Councilwoman Stephanie Werren, Ward 3, questioned whether the city can afford the cost. She wants the police department to explore pooling resources with other area departments to build a new range or use or upgrade existing ones.

"Do we all need our own private range?" she asked.

Wilder said he would not rule out collaborating with other departments.

The North Canton Police gun range was built along with the rest of City Hall, which opened in 1971. The range is about 75 feet long, 20 feet wide and is below the entrance on North Main Street. The room has solid steel plating at its southern end to catch the bullets that explode through the targets. Police have also set up makeshift props in the range such as a doorway and mailbox. The room is also used as a tornado shelter and a room to train officers on using handcuffs, pepper spray and batons.

Wilder said the cost is "a small amount of money compared to a lawsuit of millions ... a serious injury could occur if we're not training to the best of our ability."

Grimes said, "You've got to prepare for the worst and have that officer trained. I mean he's your first line of defense. ... we're putting a 21-year-old officer out there and he's making a life-and-death decision for someone."